RECIPES BY P.J. PEREA AND
LASSE SORENSEN
PHOTOS BY ADELE HODDE

Who says food lovers must plod along through the holidays with predictable hams and turkeys? This year's holiday recipe selections from OutdoorIllinois take an intentionally wild approach to main dishes and dessert. Offerings include a smooth, buttery ravioli made with squirrel; a caramel-sweet hickory nut pie; spicy Tandoori pheasant over flat bread; and seared venison tenderloin in a tomato-garlic ragout.

Special thanks to chef/hunter Lasse Sorensen, owner of Tom's Place restaurant near Carbondale, who contributed two recipes for his wild originals—squirrel ravioli and venison tenderloin ragout—which were prepared by OutdoorIllinois writer/chef Joe McFarland.

His counterpart, P.J. Perea, who reveals his own original recipes, outsmarted the squirrels to collect enough nuts for his hickory nut pie. Perea turns up the heat with his other offering, spicy Tandoori pheasant.

Go Nuts!

There's a good reason why squirrels bark angrily whenever forest intruders come near their stash of hickory nuts. Hickory nuts are amazingly delicious, prized by both squirrels and knowing chefs. Sweet and nutty like a pecan, but encased in an inner shell almost hard enough to deflect bullets, the hickory nut is a rare treat for the outdoor chef. It takes a bit of work (a bench vise and hammer in this case) to wrestle the sweet nuts from their shells, but the effort is well worth it when included in desserts like the hickory nut pie, baklava and pralines, or toasted and used as a simple ice-cream topping.

Hickory Nut Pie

Tandoori Pheasant

Hickory Nut Pie
1 1/2 cups hickory nuts, shelled
1 cup corn syrup
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla extract or 2 tbsp. maple syrup
3 eggs, beaten
1 pie crust for 9-inch pie

Preheat oven to 375° F. Place pie crust in pan and refrigerate. Set aside 1 cup of the larger pieces of nuts and place the remaining 1/2 cup in a mixing bowl. Add corn syrup, brown sugar, flavoring and eggs. Stir until well mixed and the sugar is dissolved. Fill pie, letting filling settle slightly. Evenly scatter the cup of hickory nuts over the filling. Place filled pie in oven and let crust brown slightly for 10 minutes at 375° F. Reduce temperature to 350° F and bake for 35-45 minutes or until filling has set and browned. Allow pie to cool slightly before cutting. If hickory nuts are not readily available, substitute with pecans.

Pheasant with Zing!

Beat back the chill of winter with this fiery Indian-inspired version of a traditional chicken recipe. The marinating process creates a tender and juicy bird with a bold and spicy taste that melds perfectly with the pheasant's light and wild flavor. Since most homes are not equipped with the traditional Tandoori clay oven, a gas or barbeque grill will work fine.

Tandoori Pheasant
Serves four

2 whole pheasants, skinned and dressed (1 1/2 to 2 pounds each)
2 tsp. salt
1/2 lemon or lime

Marinade

1 cup plain non-fat yogurt
1 tsp. garam masala (available at most Indian or Asian grocery stores) 1 tsp. paprika
1/2-1 tsp. ground red chili pepper
2 tbsp. fresh ginger, grated
1 tsp. garlic, minced
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander

Sauce

1/2 cup plain non-fat yogurt
1/2 cup sour cream
1 cucumber, seeded and diced Salt and pepper to taste

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Extras
Naan (a traditional Indian bread), pita bread or flatbread
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 red or green pepper, sliced

Prepare pheasant by piercing meat with fork. Cut small slices in breast meat. Sprinkle meat with salt and drizzle with lemon or lime juice. Place in non-reactive pan (citrus juices react to most metal; stainless steel is okay) and place in the refrigerator for an hour.

Mix sauce ingredients, add salt and pepper to taste and place in refrigerator.

Mix marinade ingredients and add pheasant, making sure to thoroughly coat the meat. Return to non-reactive pan and place in refrigerator. Turn every 4-6 hours. Allow pheasant to marinate overnight, unless using older birds, which require a 24-hour soak in marinade to create better results.

Cook birds over medium to high indirect heat on a gas or charcoal grill, until breast juices run clear when pierced (approximately 30-45 minutes depending on grill type and weather conditions). They also can be cooked in a conventional oven (350°) for 30 to 45 minutes and then placed in the oven broiler (500°) for 2-3 minutes, but they lose some character and flavor. Slice and serve with onions, peppers, warm naan or flatbread and chilled yogurt cucumber sauce.

Squirrel Ravioli in Sage Cream Sauce
Serves two

2 squirrels, enough to yield 2 cups cooked meat
1/2 cup Spanish onion, diced
Fresh pasta sheets or egg roll wrappers
1 tbsp. fresh sage, chopped (use less if dry; dry sage is more potent)
1 tsp. garlic, minced 1 egg yolk, beaten

Sauce
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup cream
1 tbsp. garlic, minced
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tbsp. sage, chopped Salt and pepper to taste

Brush cleaned squirrels with oil, season with salt and pepper. Bake at 400° F about 45 minutes or until tender meat can be removed from bones. Shred meat and set aside. In medium skillet, saute onion and 1 tbsp. sage in butter until onion is tender. Blend squirrel meat into mixture and remove skillet from heat.

Squirrel Ravioli in Sage Cream Sauce

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Seared Venison Tenderloin with Tomato-Garlic Ragout

Cut pasta to desired ravioli shapes, then place 1-2 tbsp. meat mixture on half of each piece. Fold each pasta sheet in half, brush the edges with beaten egg yolk and seal. Boil ravioli 6-8 minutes or until pasta is cooked.

While pasta is cooking, prepare sauce by sauteing garlic in 1 tbsp. of butter until softened. Add sage and saute briefly. Remember to respect the potency of sage; don't overdo it. Add wine and lemon juice and simmer over medium heat to reduce liquid to original volume. Add cream and simmer until thickened. Whisk in butter, a few bits at a time, then reduce to desired consistency. Pour sauce over pasta and serve immediately.

Seared Venison Tenderloin
with Tomato-Garlic Ragout
Serves two

12 oz. venison loin or backstrap, cut into four medallions
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 cup wild or cultivated mushroom pieces, sliced
1 cup cherry tomatoes cut in halves
10 cloves of garlic, blanched three times in boiling water for
     30 seconds, changing water each time
5 slices bacon, diced
1/2 cup shallots, sliced
1/2 cup V-8 juice
1 tbsp. tomato puree
1/2 cup concentrated venison or beef stock reduction
1/2 cup butter
1 tbsp. fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste

In a skillet, brown venison in very hot oil until golden brown on both sides (approx. 1 minute each side). Set meat aside. Saute mushrooms, shallots, garlic and bacon in the same skillet, cooking for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, except for parsley and butter. Cook 5 minutes, then return venison to skillet and braise in sauce until venison is medium rare. Immediately before serving, add parsley and butter. Serve with starch and vegetable of choice.

Our thanks to the Tracker's Lodge, Ltd. in Springfield, Sullivan Pheasant Farm in Petersburg and DNR staffers Randy Wiseman, Troy Gilmore, Cheryl Gwinn and Kathy Andrews for providing set props. The DNR OutdoorIllinois Gift Corner offers a variety of natural outdoor-themed tableware (see inside back cover for contact information).

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